Chatham, Cooperman offer to buy American Media (TheDeal)
One of American Media Inc.’s largest second-lien noteholders and hedge fund investor Leon Cooperman have entered into a non-binding letter of intent to take over the magazine and tabloid publisher, according to a source familiar with the situation. The source said the buying group includes hedge fund Chatham Asset Management, which owns American Media second-lien debt; Cooperman, the CEO of Omega Advisors Inc.; and Cooperman’s Omega Charitable Partnership. The beleaguered publisher of titles such as the National Enquirer, Star, Shape, and Men’s Fitness revealed Wednesday that it had entered into a non-binding LOI for a takeover that would provide much-needed liquidity. But it didn’t name who was in the buying group.
Fund Focus: Don’t Call K1T Capital A ‘Trend Follower’ (Finalternatives)
You may call K1T Capital many things—systematic, quant-based, hedge fund—but don’t call it a trend follower: “We exploit periodic cyclicality in financial data series,” CIO Ben Heaton told FINalternatives. “Our trade positioning is counter-cyclical making us an MR (mean reversion) system which is rare amongst algorithmic approaches, the vast majority of which are trend followers. This is a strength for us as it means our returns have low correlation to the crowd.” Added CEO Simon Wajcenberg: “K1T’s edge lies in using scientific research to capture patterns in market behavior that, while hard to discover, do exist and can provide an advantage for those able to exploit them.”
Jersey approves first regulated Bitcoin fund (BBC)
There are a number of businesses in the island that accept Bitcoin as payment A regulated Bitcoin investment fund overcomes anonymity concerns about the virtual currency, says its director. The Global Advisors Bitcoin Investment Fund (GABI) has been certified by the Jersey Financial Services Commission to run from 1 August. Daniel Masters said Jersey’s regulatory system meant major investors, such as pension and insurance companies, could invest in Bitcoin for the first time. The fund will not be open to investments from the general public. Global Advisors is a Jersey-based hedge fund company which usually specialises in commodities such as metals and oil.
Hedge funder to pay $28M for Puck Building condo (TheRealDeal)
Hedge fund manager David Ganek of advisory firm Level Global Investors and his novelist wife Danielle are in contract to buy a penthouse condominium at developer Jared Kushner’s Puck Building in Soho for $28 million. The 6,000-square-foot, three-bedroom apartment is one of six at the penthouse-only building at 295 Lafayette Street. Douglas Elliman brokers Dennis Mangone and Raphael De Niro had the listing, the New York Post reported. The sale was for more than $4,500 per square foot.
BNP Paribas veteran applies algorithms to hedge fund selection process (FierceFinanceIT)
A former head of global prime brokerage at BNP Paribas SA (ADR) (OTCMKTS:BNPQY) has launched an online start-up that uses algorithms to match investors to hedge funds that meet their investment strategies and risk appetites. The service, called AltX, was created by Sam Hocking, CEO and cofounder San Francisco start-up Imatchative. The former global prime broker at BNP and co-head of prime brokerage at Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) says the idea for the service came from seeing firsthand investors who were mismatched for the funds in which they were invested. Hocking gathered a team of academics and capital market professionals to develop the algorithms for hedge fund selection using combinations of behavioral and financial data.
Can Paul Singer Collect His Billions from Argentina? (JewishVoiceNY)
Since Argentina’s record default over a decade ago, they have been dodging payments of billions of dollars in foreign debts. Their time with creditors is finally running out, and it is time for Argentina to resolve its international financial battles. …Left from Argentina’s 2001 default, this case is over NML and other funds that bought the bonds. Argentina’s government is up against a subsidiary of Elliot Capital Management, which is a group of investors led by NML Capital and managed by billionaire Paul Singer. In the past, the well-trained lawyer, Singer, had won suits forcing the governments of Peru and the Republic of the Congo to pay their bonds.
Portuguese issues impacting hedge funds? (CNBC)
Illinois SURS preps searches for first hedge funds, commodities managers (PIOnline)
Illinois State Universities Retirement System, Champaign, plans to issue RFPs in its first searches for hedge funds and commodities managers under a new asset allocation that includes a more than 25% reduction in U.S. equities, said Daniel L. Allen, chief investment officer. The SURS board, which oversees $16.9 billion in defined benefit assets, targeted a 5% allocation to hedge funds and 2% to commodities. The pension fund expects to issue its first RFP for the hedge fund allocation early next year, Mr. Allen said.
OCBC unfazed by hedge fund’s stakebuilding in Wing Hang Bank (SCMP)
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp, which is buying Wing Hang Bank, achieved the “most important thing” by gaining control of more than 50 per cent of the Hong Kong lender, chief executive Samuel Tsien said. OCBC, as the Singapore lender is known, will forge ahead to garner more Wing Hang stock even as hedge fund Elliott Capital Advisors buys shares of the Hong Kong bank, Tsien said yesterday. “We know that they’re there, but in terms of would it distract us or change us from what we’re currently doing, it will not,” Tsien said. “We’ll just proceed according to the general offer document and if we cannot get 90 per cent, we’ll keep the company listed.”
Neuberger Berman real estate group hires former Standard Life Investments portfolio manager… Asia hedge funds makes gains of 1.69 per cent in June… (HedgeWeek)
Asian hedge funds returned an average of 1.69 per cent in June according to early estimates by index data provider Eurekahedge. That leaves the average Asian hedge fund up a modest 1.99 per cent for the year and a long way off achieving last year’s returns of +14.91 per cent. CTA funds were fairly flat in June, up 0.09 per cent to leave them down-1.82 per cent for the first half of 2014. Fixed income returned +0.93 per cent, long/short equities returned +1.73 per cent, whilst event-driven funds returned +3.65 per cent. Fixed income and event-driven funds have delivered a similar level of performance to investors, up 3.87 per cent and 3.73 per cent respectively on a year-to-date basis.
Rich Guys Sue To Keep Other Rich Guy From Ruining Their Nice, Quiet Little Beach Community (DealBreaker)
Hedge fund manager Louis Bacon and thespian Sean Connery, among others, want to know why the Bahamian government is letting “eccentric Canadian fashion mogul” Peter Nygard stick around and bother its citizens. More than 100 people, including actor Sean Connery and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Nicholas Brady, have filed a legal complaint against the Bahamian government over an effort by eccentric fashion mogul Peter Nygard to redevelop his Mayan-themed compound in the Lyford Cay community.
Marc Faber: Asset bubble to burst, U.S. economy not improving (PfHub)
Are asset prices in a bubble? If so, how much longer until that bubble bursts? According to Marc Faber, a legendary investor and editor of the Gloom, Boom & Doom Report, the bubble may already be in the process of blowing up. Speaking in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday, Faber, a well-known bear on the United States economy and stock market, said that asset prices are in “a colossal bubble” and that it will inevitably come to an end. The end of the asset prices bubble may already be occurring, even though stocks have continued to move upwards. For Faber, the very fact that stock prices have increased is the reason why he is so bearish, especially considering that there hasn’t been a correction in the S&P 500 of more than 11 percent. Although there may not be correction anytime soon, the U.S. could suffer from a bear market.
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Blue Harbour Group Trims Stake In CACI International Inc (CACI)
